Creatine naturally occurs in our bodies and it’s made of three amino acids – glycine, lysine and methionine (1).

Unfortunately, we are not capable of producing enough creatine for improving our overall performance, therefore additional supplementation with creatine is extremely helpful, especially for people who practice resistance training or high intensive sports.

It’s the most cost-effective supplement when it comes to muscle and strength gains, and it promotes better recovery and fat loss at the same time.

Side Effects

Other people say it retains huge amounts of water underneath the skin and causing stomach bloating and cramping.

Well, none of these is true.

These statements are made by the manufacturers of the “new and modern” forms of creatine, all of which are unproven, expensive and basically contain a CM molecule bounded to another substance.

The scientists have made it clear – creatine monohydrate has a bio availability coefficient of 99% in humans (which means it can’t be absorbed better), the only place where it retains water is in the muscle cells and most definitely it’s not the cause for the stomach bloating or cramping.

The only reported side effect of creatine supplementation is weight gain, which is not a bad thing if you’re looking to bulk up (2).

How to take ON Creatine Powder

The key to taking a creatine supplement is making sure you are saturating your muscles with it.

There are two main ways of achieving that– both with a loading phase and without.

With a loading phase, you’re basically filling your muscles with creatine faster by taking roughly 20 grams a day for a period of 5-7 days. Then, you maintain your creatine levels by ingesting sustained dosages of 5 grams a day for up to 8 weeks.

Start by taking 4 dosages of 5 grams a day (as an example, one in the morning, one with lunch, one in the afternoon and one before bed) for up to a week, and after that loading period, proceed with a single dosage per day.

Without a loading phase, you can either take 5 grams of creatine monohydrate daily, or double that dose by taking 5 grams in the morning and 5 grams before bed.

Whichever way you choose, don’t exceed the recommended 8 weeks of continuous intake.

Take at least a 3 week break before starting a new creatine monohydrate cycle.

Pro tip: Taking a creatine monohydrate supplement requires intense hydration, so be sure you drink plenty of water during your intake period. Also mix up every 5 grams of creatine with at least 200ml of water or other liquid, and add some fast carbs to it, in order to ensure even faster absorption.

Company Details

Optimum Nutrition (3) is an American sports supplements brand established in 1986, best known for the manufacture of the world’s most popular protein powder – Whey Gold Standard.

Optimum Nutrition’s impressive history and success are backed up with products that are shipped worldwide, sold over 70 countries and 10,000 retail stores.